Hobby Shop expierience

[Anonymous]

My experience with most LHSs has been pretty good. Although one that stand out in the bad department is Oddo's Hobby Center in McKeesport, PA. I was 15 at the time and I remember as I walked into the dingy dump of a shop, the creep at the counter stood their staring at me like I was Osama Bin Laden himself. I tried to ask a simple question about prices and he growled "they're marked". I also asked a question about paint for CSX locomotives and he asked What the hell kind of an engine would be grey and blue?" despite the glaring fact the railroad operates behind his shop.
I never came back.

There's a point in all this. Be nice to the younger crowd who comes into your shop. Without the younger member of the hobby there is no future to the hobby. Not every teenager who walks into your shop is looking to loot the place. Treat your customers right because their is alot more competition out there. You're not just competing with that guy on the other side ofthe street anymore now you're competing with that guy on the other side of the world. And if you can't do it he can and will and will gladly take every penny for it. If you don't want customers he'll be more than happy to take them off your hands.

One of the best I've dealt with is Tailspin Hobbies in Crabtree, PA. The guy has excellent hours and very good prices. He is also willing to stand there and have a friendly conversation with his customers. It's nice to feel like your business is appreciated. Plus the store itself is spacious and well lit and doesn't look like some dingy hole in the wall.

[Anonymous]

My LHS that I visit now seems to be practicing magic or something, They always seem ready to answer my questions and help me out when I ask. Now since they must know that I model the SOO Line, I seem to be finding more SOO Line stuff on the shelves and I leave the place a little lighter in the pocket.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Repairman87

Sorry to hear about your wifes bad time.

My LHS is Caboose hobbies [:D]

I have always been treated very nice there.

My only complaint about Caboose is they seriously need more parking!![:(!]

I wish I had it so good! My LHS's are all at least 40 miles from me, and the better ones are a bit further. Even though it's 1100 miles from me, I got to go to Caboose Hobbies this past summer. It's a great shop with a huge selection! The parking is really very inadequate, though, I must agree. As I recall, there were only about 6 to 8 spots in their lot. I was lucky to get one when I went, I suppose. I would still love to have a shop like this as my LHS, but I'm not ready to move to Denver to make it happen! [:D]

-Joe

[Anonymous]

I have to say that my wife and my 16 year old daughter have encountered various responses along the lines of what your wife encountered when shopping for me at the LHS. We live about 30 miles from a great trains only shop. My wife once called me on the cell phone when she was with an employee at the hallowed "track cabinet" to ask about what type of BK switches I wanted. In an effort to be jovial and somewhat humorous she said, I'm standing here with...." and she turned to get the employee's name..He snapped back "He doen't need to know my name!!!" Must have been a long day for this guy. We have laughed about it ever since. BTW: she bought $60.00 worth of switches, I'm sure he wasn't quite as snide then. I have sent my daughter in to buy stuff like arch bar trucks and grandt line turnbuckles for water tank bands. Blows the guys at the counter away that a 16 yr old girl is asking for this stuff.

We now take bets on who will be behind the counter. Some are nice, others are grumpy, some are in a bad mood, but we always keep a light attitude about it. The best by far is the owner . Over 80 years old I'm told, still shows up to work and is by far the nicest and coolest of the guys working there. Just last week when buying an old switchstand (the package had to be from the 60's) He looked at my daughter and said "this part has been sitting in this store since before you were born". A little sappy? Maybe.....but I'll be back shopping in his store.

[JohnT14808]

QUOTE: Originally posted by mikejenn

Thank you all for replying, I see I started a hot thread and am glad to hear about the expieriences of others..... Hopefully, they will give me the service I am used to from that little tiny LHS down in Olympia.

Mike.....just WHERE is this great LHS in Oly?? You can't mean that dusty place on 4th? Or the large new shop in Tumwater over by Fred Meyer?? Just where is this fantastic LHS......modelers in the area WANT TO KNOW!!
{Sorry you had to move to Everette.....pretty pricey up there!!}

[Anonymous]

All of the local shops have closed around me. I am in the western suburbs of Chicago. The only one left is in Elgin and that is about a 30 minute drive for me. Also, they don't have the greatest selection. We used to have several great hobby stores but they all went away. Now I mostly buy online (mailorder or ebay). We still have a great train show every month in Wheaton. I miss the local shops though. I could always find what I wasn't looking for.[;)]

[icmr]

I havent had any problems with my LHS. [bday]



Victor

Happy Railroading.[swg][swg]

[Anonymous]

We've got three Hobby Shops in my town. The first two, Rider's and Hobby Recycling, are by far the best Hobby Shops I've ever gone too. Rider's is part of a chain but carries a broad selection in N, HO, O, and G and all the personel are quite friendly. The other one, Hobby Recycling, is an ALL train shop with great prices. The owner buys all his stock used, but almost everything there is still worth looking at and I've had good luck finding a few bargains. The third, Hobby World, has a few trains but mostly stocks other things, their prices are moderate, and it smells like cigarette smoke. No thanks, I'll stick with Rider's and Hobby Recycling. BTW, sorry your wife had such a bad experience.

[bryanbell]

QUOTE: Originally posted by BRAKIE

QUOTE: Originally posted by Ibflattop

No question is a stuiped question when dealing with the public. They are your bread and butter! I would complain to the manager at your LHS about the moron that he had hired and maybe you would get a new job to fund the Hobby!!!!!!
Kevin

Well,I see you haven't work around the public or you would have never said such a thing..Kevin,Remember son there are always two sides to a story.And when it gets right down to it the manager will probably side with the employee after all for what most hobby shop pays you are lucky to keep the help you have.

I agree with Ibflattop's comments and I have worked around the public (Asst. Mgr. at Walgreen's) You get many many "stupid" questions from people but you have to smile, be polite and answer the question like its the first time you've ever been asked it.
The only reason you are there is because of the customers.
If the manager sides with the employee when they are rude to the customer than that manager is going to be looking for a different job pretty quickly.
It doesn't make any how much the employee is being paid. When they accepted the job they accepted the pay along with the responsibilities of the job, which includes answering the "stupid" questions.
There are two sides of the story but its the customers side that counts because they are the one paying the bills not the employee.

Bryan

[on30francisco]

There are two LHSs in SF. One caters to the Lionel crowd and is very pricey and cliqiu***he other is a general hobby store with an (unfortunately) dwindling train department. They sell at MSRP, don't stock many detail and scratchbuilding parts, don't carry Poly Scale paints, and have little or no information or products for On30, narrow gauge, non-mainstream HO, or anything not in the Walthers catalog. There is a great LHS in the South Bay that is strictly model railroading (only a 45 minute commute from SF on Caltrain). They cater to all gauges and scales, have a knowledgeable and (usually) courteous staff, stock a huge variety of detail and scratchbuilding supplies for all scales, and sell from 10% to 20% below MSRP. When I need to go to a LHS, I try to patronize them. I usually buy locos, big ticket items at Trainworld, Discounttrains, MB Klein, or other internet merchants. I also deal with Coronado Scale Models in Phoenix, Az. They cater to narrow gauge modelers, are extremely knowledgable and helpful about narrow gauge modeling and products, stock many obscure detail and scratchbuilding parts, and have free S&H for phone and mail orders.

[railroadyoshi]

MisterBeasly, I completely agree. I also vouch for Gerry at Maine Trains in Chelmsford, MA. (MisterBeasly, were you there today in the morning by any chance?)
He has 25% discount off of MSRP in most of his stock, very complete selection, a very well done shop layout, and is extremely helpful to me. At the time being, he has been so generous as to donate space in the back of his shop to the group I belong to.
If the AMRC wasn't significantly closer to me, i'd say Gerry's is a better choice.

[BRAKIE]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Ibflattop

No question is a stuiped question when dealing with the public. They are your bread and butter! I would complain to the manager at your LHS about the moron that he had hired and maybe you would get a new job to fund the Hobby!!!!!!
Kevin

Well,I see you haven't work around the public or you would have never said such a thing..Kevin,Remember son there are always two sides to a story.And when it gets right down to it the manager will probably side with the employee after all for what most hobby shop pays you are lucky to keep the help you have.

[DALCruiser]

Mike

I know how others have mentioned that they take their business else where rather than put up with such bad treatment, and I agree. One thing most people don't think about or understand is that any REASONABLE business OWNER does not want to LOSE business ( read $$$$). Most don't know when a customer leaves without making a purchase or swears never to buy again after such treatment. If seeking out the OWNER is uncomfortable or not possible, write the OWNER a letter of complaint and request an answer as to what action will be taken. If you don't hear from them, then kiss them off and SPREAD THE WORD wide and far!! You might not get any corrective action but when the OWNER knows he's losing business ($$$) then most will try to fix it. Many a store have gone out of business because they felt they didn't have to respond to customer issues. A REASONABLE OWNER will fix the problem immediately and you need to know this if you are to ever do business with them again. It has worked for me and has been greatly appreciated by others who also shop there.

Dave

[Ibflattop]

No question is a stuiped question when dealing with the public. They are your bread and butter! I would complain to the manager at your LHS about the moron that he had hired and maybe you would get a new job to fund the Hobby!!!!!!
Kevin

[Anonymous]

Thank you all for replying, I see I started a hot thread and am glad to hear about the expieriences of others. I can honestly say that that LHS will never get my money again. I agree with those who say that they like to support their local LHS as I am the same way. When I lived down in Olympia we had a great LHS that i used to visit all the time when I was first getting started in the hobby. Great customer service and very knowledgeable. However, I know live in the Everett area and it seems the LHS are far and few between and the ones we do have around don't carry much train stuff [V]. So I guess I will have to either travel or shop online bummer. I currently work security for Boeing and I am always gettin asked stupid questions. I can see how it can get under your skin quickly. But, I have to remember that due to repition what is familiar and easy for me may not be for the person I am dealing with. The company pays a lot of money to have professional, courteous employees too bad that doesn't carry on to every business. I checked and the box did not have HO printed on it anywhere. I am very happy that my wife takes the time to not only learn about my hobby, but to also learn what scale I model and railroad (BNSF) without even asking me. That to me shows a very strong interest and I wish I could take back the negative expierience she had but I can't. I can, however, choose to spend my money wisely and after hearing about others expieriences I think I will scout the area more and see if I can find any LHS tucked away in some corner. Hopefully, they will give me the service I am used to from that little tiny LHS down in Olympia.

[trainfreek92]

i deal with Shepaug Railroad Company one guy owns it and another guy helps him out they are very nice to me and help me with any qoustians The shop is pretty fair with there prices. if i were you i would never do bussines with them.

[rockisland4309]

I agree with rrgrassi. Whenever I visit Dallas the first place I go to is Discount Model Trains and they hook me up everytime I go with great customer service and good prices. My LHS here in Phoenix is terrible with not a great selection and prices are all MSRP no discounts. Besides Discount Model Trains I shop online with www.firsthobby.com and they have great deals and good service.

[fwright]

Don't mean to hijack the thread - but I'm sort of on topic.

I travel a lot to San Diego, Washington DC, and various parts of Alaska (not many LHS there!) I try to frequent hobby shops in the evening to avoid hotel wall and TV syndrome. Unfortunately, finding one that has hours past 6PM ain't always easy!

Anyway, in San Diego, Reed's gets my dollars. Although they have relatively little HOn3 or 1900 era HO, they are always willing to order and mail it to me for no extra charge. They have even offered to call me when something used or on consignment I might like is coming in. And the best part is that they open all the boxes that don't have pictures and wrap the open box in cellophane. That way, I can see exactly what is in the box without feeling guilty about opening it.

In Northern Virginia, Grandad's is my favorite non-LHS. The staff treats me like gold even though I'm not a "regular". Again, staff has taken the time to ask what my interests are and point out items I might be interested in. Also offered to mail me my purchases or orders for no extra charge.

OTOH, here in Northern California, my closest LHS marks up above MSRP. I suspected it, but couldn't prove it until I saw a copy of MR marked for $1.50 above cover price. The good that came out of that was I found out the MR staff read these forums, and started a nice e-mail exchange that allowed me to submit my opinions on how to improve the magazine.

I don't buy anything locally any more because of the above MSRP pricing. I save my purchases for road trips and/or phoning a few special dealers with my orders. For out of production stuff that my dealer network can't locate, I do use eBay.

going back to lurking
Fred

[BRAKIE]

Mike said:In then case discussed, it wasn't even a stupid question. It was a perfectly legitimate question. In fact, when my wife is with me at shows, she's usually the one who asks the customer if what they have is the scale they need.


Well,does the term "common sense" ring a bell or is that to old fashion? I suspect most people that ask stupid questions doesn't bother to read whats on the box or the instructions.I have seen it many times over and over in all the years I worked around the public.....90% of the people that ask stupid questions fail to read or follow instructions.When I operate a forklift time and again I got to see how stupid some people can be.I seen professional truck drivers that couldn't follow simple instructions.I could never understand how these guys got their CDLs.

Make all the excuse you want there are some very stupid people out there.


Now,should I come to your train show table and your wife asks "is that is the scale I need?" you just lost a sale as I would see that has a insult as would thousands of modelers that's been in the hobby any lenght of time.

[CP5415]

Word of mouth will hurt business. I've worked in the automotive repair business for 16 years now. It's worse now with the internet. I try not to make people upset.

As for hobby shop experience, I'm sticking with who I deal with now.
I know what I want so help is usually not a problem, Bob & his helpers all know me & I've even helped other customers find items they're looking for if the clerks are busy.

I've had one really bad experience with one well known hobby shop on Mt Pleasant in Toronto. They wasted 2 hours of my time, all of it travel time.
Having said that they had an item instock only to find out after getting there that they haven't had it for a couple of weeks.
Besides, the place I shop now is cheaper than that one.
Not worth gas & time to spend a few dollars more on the same item.

The few other shops I've visited were decent enough, again a bit more expensive than where I shop now, but I have found items that haven't been available for some time.
There's one in Streetsville where I found an Accurail Ashley, Drew & Northern covered hopper for $9 Can.
It pays to check out a LHS, even to look around for stuff you might not be able to find on the WWW.

Gordon

[emdgp92]

I'd rather deal with my local hobby shop (A.B. Charles & Son in Dormont...near Pittsburgh) than buy things online. Not only have I been going there for years, but I've never had a problem with them. Ever. They are more than willing to let me see the models before I buy them, and can suggest what couplers or other detail parts I'll need.

But, even they get stupid questions. Just the other day, one of the employees took a call fro someone who couldn't understand why his Lionel cars "kept coming apart" whenever they went over the uncoupler...and he pushed the button.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Having worked part time in a hobby shop and as a part time train show dealer I can assure you that your patience can wear mighty thin from rude customers to the need to answer fairly stupid questions

Having worked 36 years as a park ranger and the last few as a part time train show dealer, I've had my share of "stupid" questions. But you know what? It's my job to take those situations in stride and never make the customer feel uncomfortable.

That's one of the biggest challenges when dealing with the public. Many times a person doesn't really know what to ask. You have to listen to what they say and then figure out what it was they really wanted to know.

In then case discussed, it wasn't even a stupid question. It was a perfectly legitimate question. In fact, when my wife is with me at shows, she's usually the one who asks the customer if what they have is the scale they need.

The jerk in question should have been canned on the spot.

Mike Tennent

[Anonymous]

Good point! Customers can kinda desensitize employees. I've been there myself. There are always two sides to every story. I think in this case though, the employee at the LHS should have been more receptive to their customer's needs.

QUOTE: Originally posted by BRAKIE

Having worked part time in a hobby shop and as a part time train show dealer I can assure you that your patience can wear mighty thin from rude customers to the need to answer fairly stupid questions such as "Is this a Athearn kit? I think,Are you stupid or can't read of course its a Athearn kit dummy.Says so right on the box..Then you have the horses behind that has you to pull every new engine out of the show case and after looking at 'em say,well thanks! I can get 'em cheaper on line,by mail order etc even though the shop I was working for was price competitive with on line shops...[:(!] Needless to say you can gain a attitude and seeing living proof how stupid and rude some people are.
However,a good hobby shop owner or clerk knows how to be polite and courteous and never insult a customer.
Mike,What happen to you wife was uncalled for.Now the time for laughter and snide remarks would be AFTER she left the store ..And that happens a lot in just about every business you can name.

[BRAKIE]

Having worked part time in a hobby shop and as a part time train show dealer I can assure you that your patience can wear mighty thin from rude customers to the need to answer fairly stupid questions such as "Is this a Athearn kit? I think,Are you stupid or can't read of course its a Athearn kit dummy.Says so right on the box..Then you have the horses behind that has you to pull every new engine out of the show case and after looking at 'em say,well thanks! I can get 'em cheaper on line,by mail order etc even though the shop I was working for was price competitive with on line shops...[:(!] Needless to say you can gain a attitude and seeing living proof how stupid and rude some people are.
However,a good hobby shop owner or clerk knows how to be polite and courteous and never insult a customer.
Mike,What happen to you wife was uncalled for.Now the time for laughter and snide remarks would be AFTER she left the store ..And that happens a lot in just about every business you can name.

[Soo Line fan]

Sorry about the way your wife got treated by that idiot. Many auto-repair shops make that same mistake by treating woman as "bimbos". Huge mistake! Not only do they not return, the women relate that experience to their friends, husbands, boyfriends and family members. Most auto dealership personnel are given training to avoid this type of thing because it is so self-destructive. Word of mouth will kill you, but now you have the power of the Internet to share your experience.

Jim

[Anonymous]

Hey Mike. Sorry to hear that your Wife got treated very stupidly by some a** hole but... If I where you,id shop "on line" from now on. That would make me mad too. Pore Woman just saking a simple question and get's treated like that. That's BS!

[MAbruce]

This subject comes up often. It seems that Local Hobby Shops (LHS) seem to draw a lot of criticism. If they are not very friendly to people, they are over priced.

In my experience, LHS owners/workers are hobbyists themselves. This can be both a good and bad thing. It’s good to have that experience so they can offer all sorts of advice. But unfortunately I’ve found that most hobbyists tend to be introverts and are not very good with social skills. That tends to be a problem in a retail environment.

That aside, I personally do my business at places that give me the best value for my money (money being in very short supply these days). My preference is to seek product advice in forums like this and then to seek out a desired product at a place that will sell for the lowest price (and has reliable service). This tends to be on-line stores.

I have nothing against the LHS, and am happy to give them my business if it makes fiscal sense to do so. But I’ve found that my hobby dollar goes significantly further at on-line stores.

[loathar]

Counter Weight-Not to go off topic here, but.....I did the wise thing and made friends with the head of my wally world toy dept. I enlightened her about 1/87 scale stuff and why grown ups where buying them by the case. She now calls me and gives me the heads up when they get new stuff in.(you get more train stuff with honey than vinager)

[tstage]

Mike,

Sorry to hear about your wife's bad experience. But I'm glad to hear that you voiced your dissatisfaction to the LHS directly. Is that a store that you have personally frequented a lot? Personally, I'd find another LHS to support.

I have 3 good LHSes in my area that I try and support - each about 30 minutes away:

Depot Train & Hobby - Cleveland
Wings Hobby - Lakewood
Stewart's Hobbies - Willoughby

Although I don't buy everything from my LHS, I do give them about 90% of my business - especially rolling stock. (I like to open the kits to check and see that the BLT dates are in my era.)

One LHS in particular has a gentleman who has a lifetime of practical experience and REALLY knows his stuff. To me, it's worth the little extra money just to glean from this storehouse of information.

Tom